SEPA Foundation develops new periodontal health recommendations for the United States

A multidisciplinary group of international and American specialists has met in New Jersey to develop new periodontal disease prevention and treatment recommendations tailored to the United States. This initiative, titled ‘Principles for Oral Health’, is led by the SEPA Foundation and sponsored by Listerine.

Participants included experts from various academic institutions, such as the University of Michigan, University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), University of Pennsylvania, Ohio State University, Texas A&M University, A. T. Still University, and the Complutense University of Madrid. The goal is to translate rigorous science into practical, personalized guidance for dental teams.

The meeting addressed the high prevalence of periodontal disease in the U.S., noting that according to the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), 42.2 percent of American adults aged 30 or older with natural dentition exhibit some degree of periodontitis. Experts emphasized that effective prevention begins with managing gingivitis, a reversible inflammatory condition that precedes periodontitis.